More on avoiding the hard way.....

I thought I'd share some more stories of people who almost dove into impossible projects, mainly because their simply uninformed. One guy had a 1981 Turbo Trans-Am that he wanted more power out of. I suggested that he buy a 400 or 455 Pontiac for an instant power infusion. The motor mounts are in the same place, and all the tin and accesories would fit provided the bigger engine was a 1970 or later model. ( '69 and earlier use different motor mounts).  This would be the easiest and cheapest way. The 2nd easiest way would be go to a junkyard and get a supercharged 3.8 V6 out of a wrecked Bonneville SSEI or Gran Prix or Riviera. Get the wiring harness, and the fuel pump, and you'd be good to go. These engines had 240 hp stock-more than the ill-fated 301 he was replacing-and could easily be upped by changing the pulleys on the Roots-type supercharger. Of course he asked about hopping up the 301. 1st off- they were a lightweight "economy" motor that other than external dimensions and the valve covers, oil pan, and timing cover-absolutely nothing interchanges with a traditional-i.e.-326-455 Pontiac V8. There is zero aftermarket parts available for these engines. I mean nothing-no heads, intakes, headers, cams- nothing. He said why couldn't you just turn up the boost?  If they wouldn't hold up to seven lbs of boost when they were new-how is one 36 years old going to hold up to 15 lbs or more?  There's no forged pistons available, no heavy duty rods, nothing you could do to beef one up to handle a large amount of boost. My other suggestion was if he didn't like the first two-he'd have to get a Chevy bolt-pattern transmission-was drop a small or big block Chevy crate motor into it. I also suggested that if he absolutely had to have a Turbocharged engine that he buy a fuel-injected 3800 V6 and the wiring harness out of a late-model Buick Lesabre or Olds or Pontiac and contact Kenne-Bell or T/A performance. Both companies do extensive work with Buick Grand Nationals and could probably set him up with a Turbo setup fairly easily. I also suggested contacting Gale Banks-he's had great success Turbocharging big-block Chevys. What about turbocharging a 400 Pontiac? Part of the reason the 301 Turbo was a dog-as were pre-'85 Buick Regal T-Types-was it was nearly impossible to make the turbos work with a carburator and avoid detonation on cheap gas. Grand Nationals only got badass when Multi-Port Fuel Injection was adopted in 1985. It's much easier to map a Turbo fuel curve with electronic fuel injection than it is with a carburator. I might as well have been talking to the wall. "There's got to be a way to turbo a "real" Pontiac engine." Like there was a way for Harrah to put a Ferarri engine in a Jeep....The other guy I think I mentioned in an earlier post-wanted to buy his neighbors pristine 4-cylinder '89 Mustang and hop that up, by putting a V8 in it. I told him it would be much easier to just go buy a "5.0" Mustang. There's millions of them out there at reasonable prices-and swapping the 4-banger for a V8 would be a huge hassle and expensive-much more expensive than just buying a car with a V8 already in it!  Then he asks about turbocharging the 4-banger. Again-the easy way would be just go buy an '84-86 SVO Mustang that already has a turbocharged 4 in it-with between 175 and 205 hp depending on year-and you could turn the boost up and get 100 more easily. The 2.3 Ford 4-banger has a bulletproof bottom end and can handle it. So why couldn't he Turbo the normally aspirated '89? Because the myriad of parts you'd have to chase down-again the time and cost factor would be so prohibitive-plus-again this guys is not a dealership mechanic-he's a grocery clerk-who has no Idea how to map a fuel curve or set up a knock sensor-etc- would be better off just buying an SVO. Why he was obsessed with taking on this project I don't know-I have over 30 years experience as a mechanic and service manager-and If I wanted to play with a Fox Mustang, I would just go buy a "5.0" or an SVO!!!  Why amateurs want to attempt things that would make a pro cringe, I don't know. Like I said-I sometimes think sports-car guys are smarter-If they want a Datsun Z or a Porsche 944 with a Turbo-they scour the want ads and the internet and go buy one!! They don't buy a normally aspirated one and try to "convert" it!!  If they want a 6-cylinder 911 or a 914 / 6-they pay the price. They don't buy a 4-banger 912 or 914 and try to "build their own"!!  That's all I'm saying-don't bring untold frustration and financial disaster into your life when you don't have to. Mastermind